Concrete pig pallet

ABSTRACT

A concrete pig pallet for a farrowing pen comprising a floor portion which is supported above the farrowing building floor by a pair of spaced apart support legs integrally formed therewith. The floor portion comprises a peaked center portion having a pair of end portions positioned outwardly therefrom. One of the end portions has a plurality of equally spaced apart slots formed therein. The other end portion has equally spaced larger slots formed in the center portion thereof with equally spaced smaller slots formed therein adjacent the sides thereof. Reinforcing rods extend through the pallet to provide the necessary strength thereto.

United States Patent [191 Stevenson 1451 Sept. 16, 1975 CONCRETE PIG PALLET [76] Inventor: Donald W. Stevenson, Rt. No. l,

Mitchellville, Iowa 50169 22] Filed: Apr. 12, 1974 21 Appl. No.: 461,022

[52] US. Cl. 119/20; 108/51; 119/28 51 Int. cm A01K 1/02 [58] Field of Search 119/20, 28; 108/51 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 813,317 2/1906 Murray 119/28 1,522,744 l/l925 Pitman 108/51 3,228,376 1/1966 Conover 119/28 Primary Examiner.l. N. Eskovitz Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Zarley, McKee, Thomte & Voorhees [5 7] ABSTRACT A concrete pig pallet for a farrowing pen comprising a floor portion which is supported above the farrowing building floor by a pair of spaced apart support legs integrally formed therewith. The floor portion comprises a peaked center portion having a pair of end portions positioned outwardly therefrom. One of the end portions has a plurality of equally spaced apart slots formed therein. The other end portion has equally spaced larger slots formed in the center portion thereof with equally spaced smaller slots formed therein adjacent the sides thereof. Reinforcing rods extend through the pallet to provide the necessary strength thereto.

5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures CONCRETE PIG PALLET BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a pig pallet for a farrowing pen and more particularly to a concrete pig pallet which serves as the floor of a farrowing pen. Conventional farrowing pens ordinarily have a continuous or solid floor. The conventional farrowing pen floors are difficult to clean and result in unsanitary conditions for the small pigs.

Therefore, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a concrete pig pallet for'a farrowing pen. A further object of the invention is to provide a pig pallet for a farrowing pen which is designed so that the animal waste may pass therethrough.

A further object of the invention is to provide a concrete pig pallet having slots formed therein in such a manner to efficiently permit the animal waste to pass therethrough while preventing the feet of the small pigs from falling therethrough.

A further object of the invention is to provide a concrete pig pallet which is easily moved.

A further object of the invention is to provide a concrete pig pallet which is ideally suited for serving as a floor for a farrowing pen.

A further object of the invention is to provide a concrete pig pallet which is economical of manufacture, durable in use and refined in appearance.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS This invention consists in the construction, arrangements and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the pallet of this invention having a farrowing pen positioned thereon:

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the pig pallet:

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view seen on lines 3 3 of FIG. 2:

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view seen on lines 4 4 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the reinforcing rods used in the concrete pallet.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT In the drawings, the numeral refers to the concrete pig pallet of this invention while the numeral 12 refers to a conventional farrowing pen. Farrowing pen 12 comprises a central portion 14 in which the sow is positioned so that her head is positioned towards the door 16 with her posterior being positioned adjacent the door 18. Creep areas 20 and 22 are provided on opposite sides of the central area 14 to permit the small pigs to move away from the sow as desired and to gain access to the sow in the central area 14 as also desired.

Pallet 10 comprises a floor portion 24 having a pair of elongated legs or pedestals 26 and 28 extending downwardly therefrom as seen in FIG. 3 for engagement with the floor of the farrowing building. Floor portion 24 includes a central portion 30 which is peaked as seen in FIG. 3 so that the waste material will drain outwardly therefrom. Floor portion 24 also comprises end portions 32 and 34 which are positioned beneath the farrowing pen beneath the sows head and posterior respectivelyfEnd portion 32 is provided with a plurality of equally spacedslots 36 formed therein preferably having a width of three-eights inch. End portion 34 is also provided a plurality of slots formed therein but the slots at the central portion thereof are approximately 1 inch widewhile the slots adjacent the sides thereof preferably have a width of three-eights inch. The larger slots at the central portion of end portion34 are to permit the larger pieces or chunks of manure from the -sow to pass downwardly therethrough. The smaller slots at the sides of end portion '34 are positioned'in the creep areas and are small enough so that the feet of the baby pig will not pass downwardly therethrough. The inverted V-shape of the slots 36 and 38 also prevent the waste from accumulating therein.

The pallet 10 is comprised of concrete and has a plurality of reinforcing rods extending therethrough as seen in FIG. 5. For purposes of description, the reinforcing rods will be described as comprising end rods 40 and 42, side rods 44 and 46, center rod 48, and intermediate rods 50 and 52. The rods 40, 42, 44, 46, 48 and 50 are secured together in conventional fashion and preferably have a diameter of one-half inch. H- shaped rods 54 and 56 are also provided and are positioned in the leg portions 26 and 28 respectively. Smaller rods 58 are secured to the rods 40 and 52 and extend therebetween as seen in FIG. 5 while rods 60 are securedto rods 42 and 50 and extend therebetween. The rods 58 and 60 are positioned within the concrete between the slots and preferably have a diameter of three-eighths inch. The rods serve as reinforcing rods and provide the necessary strength to the pallet so that the pallet may be transported from one location to another location without breaking. The unitary structure of the pallet permits the farrowing pen 12 to be placed thereon and secured thereto by any convenient means. The combination of the pallet and the farrowing pen is extremely convenient and permits a great amount of versatility to be achieved within the farrow- I ing building.

Thus it can be seen that an unique concrete pallet has been provided for a farrowing pen which insures that the animal waste will fall downwardly therethrough while preventing the feet of the baby pigs to fall downwardly therethrough. Thus it can be seen that the pallet accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.

I claim: 1. A pig pallet comprising, a concrete floor portion, at least a pair of concrete supporting legs extending downwardly from said floor portion for supporting said floor portion above the supporting surface,

said floor portion comprising a central portion and first and second end portions positioned outwardly thereof,

said end portions having a plurality of spaced apart slots formed therein to permit the pig waste to pass downwardly therethrough,

the slots in said first end portion being equally spaced apart and being equally sized, and

said central portion of said floor portion having a continuous upper surface.

2. The pig pallet of claim I wherein said floor portion is oppositely sloped outwardly from the center thereof.

3. The pig palletof claim 1 wherein said supporting legs are integrallyfonned with said floor portion.

4. The pig pallet of claim 3 wherein a plurality of reinforcing rods are imbedded in said floorportion and said supporting legs, said rods comprising first and second end rods, first and second side rods secured to and extending between the ends of said end rods, a central rod secured to said first and secondend rods at the cen ter length thereof and extending therebetween, first and second l-l-shaped rods imbedded in said supporting legs and being secured to said side rods, and a plurality of short rods secured tosaid first and second end rods and extending inwardly therefrom between said slots.

5. A pig pallet for use on a s upporting surface, comp n ,a concrete floor portion,

at least a pair of concrete supporting legs extending downwardly from said floor portion for supporting said floor portion above the supporting surface,

said floor portion comprising a central portion and side portions. 

1. A pig pallet comprising, a concrete floor portion, at least a pair of concrete supporting legs extending downwardly from said floor portion for supporting said floor portion above the supporting surface, said floor portion comprising a central portion and first and second end portions positioned outwardly thereof, said end portions having a plurality of spaced apart slots formed therein to permit the pig waste to pass downwardly therethrough, the slots in said first end portion being equally spaced apart and being equally sized, and said central portion of said floor portion having a continuous upper surface.
 2. The pig pallet of claim 1 wherein said floor portion is oppositely sloped outwardly from the center thereof.
 3. The pig pallet of claim 1 wherein said supporting legs are integrally formed with said floor portion.
 4. The pig pallet of claim 3 wherein a plurality of reinforcing rods are imbedded in said floor portion and said supporting legs, said rods comprising first and second end rods, first and second side rods secured to and extending between the ends of said end rods, a central rod secured to said first and second end rods at the center length thereof and extending therebetween, first and second H-shaped rods imbedded in said supporting legs and being secured to said side rods, and a plurality of short rods secured to said first and second end rods and extending inwardly therefrom between said slots.
 5. A pig pallet for use on a supporting surface, comprising, a concrete floor portion, at least a pair of concrete supporting legs extending downwardly from said floor portion for supporting said floor portion above the supporting surface, said floor portion comprising a central portion and first and second end portions positioned outwardly thereof, said end portions having a plurality of spaced apart slots formed therein to permit the pig waste to pass downwardly therethrough, said second end portion comprising a central portion and side portions on opposite sides thereof, the slots in said central portion of said second end portion having a greater width than the slots in said side portions. 